Six puppies on a live stream are getting Finland through its long, dark nights
Finland's public broadcaster, Yle, is streaming Hilkka, a Lagotto Romagnolo who works as a school dog, and the six puppies she had on 10 October, around the clock. In its first two weeks, Pentulive reached 1.85 million people, in a country of about 5.6 million. The figures come from Yle.
In the early hours of Saturday 10 October, Hilkka gave birth to six puppies, four males and two females, in front of a camera that Finland’s public broadcaster, Yle, streams 24 hours a day. Since then, much of Finland has been watching that box: in its first two weeks, Pentulive reached 1.85 million people and racked up more than a million hours of live viewing, according to figures Yle updated on 23 October. The country has about 5.6 million inhabitants.
A school dog on maternity leave
Hilkka is a four-year-old Lagotto Romagnolo, the Italian water-dog breed now used to hunt truffles. Her usual job is school dog at a secondary school: according to Yle, she goes up to the quietest pupil, or the one most nervous before an exam, and stays by their side. This autumn she is on leave. It is her second litter; she had five puppies just over two years ago.
Hilkka before the birth. Photo: Lauri Danska / Yle.
The cameras went on on 6 October, a few days before the birth, and will run until around mid-December, when the puppies are about eight weeks old and ready to leave for new homes. Along the way viewers will see the moments everyone waits for: eyes opening, first steps, the first trip outdoors. The puppies were named on 24 October by the Pentulive community and the breeder family, whose identity Yle keeps private so they can focus on the dogs.
Two of the six puppies at two weeks old. Photos: breeder’s home album, Julia Kiiskinen / Yle.
From Finland’s nights to Sweden and the Netherlands
This is the programme’s sixth season, and each year features a different breed: before Hilkka there were Labradors, Shiba Inus, Whippets, Border Collies and English Springer Spaniels. The 2025 season already broke records, with more than a million unique viewers and 20 million views on social media, and this year’s is on track to beat it. Swedish broadcaster SVT is showing the stream, and a Dutch public broadcaster has bought the rights to the programme.
A puppy falls asleep on Hilkka’s paw on 14 October, on the Pentulive stream. Video: Yle.
How to watch Hilkka and her puppies from anywhere
The stream can be watched from any country, with no geoblocking. According to Yle, its biggest audiences outside Finland are in the US, Sweden, Germany and the UK.
- 24/7 live stream: Pentulive on Yle Areena
- Pentulive on social media: Instagram, TikTok and Facebook
- In Swedish: Valplive from Svenska Yle and Valparna live on SVT Play
A chat opens alongside the stream every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 6pm Helsinki time (4pm UK time), in Finnish.
